Fusion

April has come in with a bang. I spent two wonderful days away in the suburbs of Kansas City last week. It was the perfect small getaway trip to head to Excelsior Springs for Art & Soul. I was happy to be in the company of several of my collage club buddies and met some super people in my two classes. I took two classes from Jane Davies and both were terrific. Collage on the Grid was a short class on Wednesday night that helped us focus on creating in series with limited papers and shapes. Fabric-Paper Collage was all day Thursday. We created several different kinds of papers and melded them with fabric into a finished piece. Mine needs some stitching to finish it and then I'll post. However, I did try another one pictured above in an altered book that I shared with my collage club. I would not hesitate to recommend Jane as a teacher. She does online classes as well and has books and DVDs out. I am looking forward to next year's return visit to Art &Soul.
I must mention for those in the Kansas City area that I did some visiting before I went to Excelsior Springs. I began with a stop at Paper Source which was filled to the brim with large handmade and commercially made sheets of paper, more artsy note pads than should be in one store, and all sorts of specialty gift items. Coming from a needlework background, I also stopped at Two the Point in Overland Park and enjoyed my journey through their fibers and many needlepoint and cross stitch patterns. It was a marvelous stop but I was able to just browse. Finally, I met with the owner of Stamper's Ink in Shawnee, Tanya, and received a tour of their store, their huge classroom and got a feel for the clientele. We have a great weekend planned for September. I can't wait to return.
Concurrently, we have welcomed two babies into our family within 48 hours of each other. I am a great aunt to two new nephews, David Samuel Pretz and Elliott Scotland Pretz. Both are healthy and thriving and I can't wait to see them when I head to PA in a couple of weeks. There's nothing like new babies to bring joy into your family. On our homefront, I am continuing to look into adding another standard poodle into our family this summer....a different kind of baby, but the only kind I'm adding these days. Tucker misses his buddy and we miss having the two and their camaraderie. We'll keep you posted on the progress.He's only a little spoiled!

I have planned my next few months of classes so I will share the list here. Keep checking back for more info. It's a fluid schedule.
UPCOMING CLASSES:
New Art Legacies, IL Friday, April 12 1:00-4:00 pm Snippets: A Studio Cloth Introduction
For Keeps Sake, MO Saturday June 1 10:30-1:30 It's In the Cards: Mixed Media ATCS
Simply Said Rubber Stamps OH Friday and Sat June 21-22 times TBA It's in the Cards: Mixed Media ATCs, Snippets, Kaleidoscope
Stampaway OH Friday, August 9 8:30-11:00 am Tattered and Torn
Stamper's Ink, KS September 13-14 times TBA Resist, Kaleidoscope, Sheer Fusion